Thursday’s, on this nook of the Universo Pugilistico, are all about my sack– my bulging, bulbous, aching sack– and the gooey, salty reality contained inside. So…sit again, shut your eyes, pull again your hair, and prepare for this week’s cash shot of knowledge. This week we deal with Haney-Kambosos feedback/questions.
Haney Undisputed
Hey Paul, hope all is nicely on this loopy world. Let’s soar proper in.
I’m not a Monday morning QB. In reality I despise these guys. So let’s use a little bit of info to again up my case earlier than we absolutely dive in.
On March thirty first 2022 I wrote a prolonged put up through which you revealed for the sack. This was my final paragraph.
“However ducking is a sin, and as these earlier than him he can pay for ducking. His 15 minutes is up. There may be nothing from a boxing perspective he does higher than Haney. It’s humorous when somebody beats a fighter that’s in such excessive regard (Lopez who was all the time overrated and has critical flaws). He’s now the most effective factor since sliced bread. Hell, put Valdez in right here with a win over Berchelt. Just a few months in the past the toughest of hardcore followers knew little to nothing about Kambosos. Devin goes to select him aside. Kambosos isn’t a legacy combat, however being undisputed is. This combat has changed my future Spence-Crawford combat and has changed my thirst to see Stevenson cease the drug cheat Valdez. I can’t look ahead to Haney to beat up Kambosos in Aussie land!”
I need to emphasize the underlined daring a part of my remark. As I mentioned a couple of months again, Kambosos does nothing higher than Haney from a boxing perspective and boy was that evident. He was fully outclassed in a combat the place 2 judges have to be investigated and suspended. Kambosos didn’t win 4 seconds of that combat. Not to mention 4 rounds. Not solely did the attention take a look at disclose to me how the combat would unfold, however I did my homework. I watched a handful of Kambosos’ earlier fights and he was under common to me. Not quick, not sturdy, inaccurate to say the least. I didn’t price him anyplace close to Devin. All of it stems from the pedestal. Lopez beats Loma (who folks worship) now Lopez is the most effective, he has a horrible evening loses to Kambosos and now Kambosos is overhyped. I believe we as followers have to cease prematurely crowning folks.
That is the place I’ve to respectfully maintain your toes to the hearth. In your most up-to-date article you ended it by scripting this,” The child must be preventing higher and higher boxers to develop his elite-level chops and never opponents he can beat in straightforward mode with a jab and footwork.”
In your response to the put up I made in March you mentioned this in regards to the combat final result:
“As for the combat, itself? I mentioned final week that, proper now, I’m leaning in the direction of Kambosos. Haney is a greater fighter, however is he harder? Will he be as much as the duty of preventing on such hostile territory? Can he get a good shake? Quite a bit will probably be working in opposition to him and he’ll have to combat a near-perfect combat with zero slip-ups. I don’t assume he’s able to that massive displaying simply but. I’m hardly saying he has zero probability, although. I say it’s most likely 55-45 or 60-40 that Kambosos wins, however, after all, we’re greater than two months out and I reserve the proper to alter my thoughts primarily based on what I see main as much as combat evening.”
Haney within the eyes of some simply can’t get a good shake. Earlier than the combat many predicted he would lose. Some even mentioned he could be stopped. He dominated in such vogue now some say he must be matched with higher fighters and never ones he can simply beat with a jab. It’s not Devin’s fault Kambosos was extremely overrated as I beforehand acknowledged. Who was he alleged to combat? lol Blame the media and followers for hyping him the way in which they did. There was no logical purpose in my thoughts one would decide Kambosos over Haney in a combat. Kambosos is a mediocre fighter who beat one other fighter with critical flaws (Lopez) that additionally ducked Haney for undisputed. You additionally mentioned Haney has chinks in his armor. Nicely if one is to just accept that than what the hell does everybody else have Swiss cheese holes?
He simply beat a person with 3 belts that was supposedly suppose to be a warrior, however I noticed no warrior mentality I noticed no relentlessness. What I see now’s a crownless self-imposed and uncovered emperor that’s doing nothing however making excuses that he gained the combat like Lopez did and Loma earlier than him.
-Haney Undisputed!
— Lawrence Westbrook
Hey Lawrence.
I’ve been chomping on the bit to reply to your e-mail ever since I received it. I really like an excellent problem and I additionally love having my toes held to the hearth. Good challenges maintain everybody sharp and trustworthy.
Anyway, the factor about any fighter is that we don’t know till we all know. Haney’s performances have been uneven and uninspired, particularly as he’s stepped at school. The expertise and talent is there, however the child has by no means carried out like an elite-level fighter decided to be an elite-level fighter. He’s achieved the naked minimal to return out forward, coasting on his edges in talent and uncooked capability. Sorry, that’s simply actuality. No person can inform me that they ever checked out Haney and mentioned, “Rattling, this child is burning to show his greatness!”
And, you understand what? That’s STILL the case.
Haney fought Kambosos very, extraordinarily adequately to take the choice. He by no means pushed issues to actually set up his dominance. This, regardless of it being very apparent that he was the far superior fighter when the combat truly began taking part in out. That doesn’t precisely scream “greatness.” The good ones drill residence their greatness. So, for me, yeah, the jury remains to be out on Haney and I have to see him execute at an elite stage in opposition to somebody who can (and can) additionally execute at an elite stage.
You’ll be able to’t have it each methods in terms of this win. You’ll be able to’t say that this win makes him an elite, but additionally say that Kambosos is mediocre. Taking a managed, protected victory over a mediocre fighter is hardly a legacy-defining feat. Haney needed to have this combat to unify the titles, so there’s nothing adverse about preventing Kambosos and I gave the child tons of credit score for making the concessions wanted to get this chance.
In the end, Kambosos didn’t have the talent, uncooked capability, or psychological fortitude to make any changes on this combat. However Haney by no means hammered residence his dominance both. We left this combat precisely as we got here into it– not figuring out what occurs when Haney can’t get by means of a combat with uncooked athleticism and bare-minimum talent, alone.
So, yeah…every part I mentioned earlier than nonetheless applies now and I’m completely not prepared to proclaim Haney’s greatness primarily based on this displaying. He needs to be acknowledged because the no. 1 light-weight as a result of he has all of the belts, however these questions on perceived chinks in his armor– which largely associated to his psychological make-up and psychological toughness– have been under no circumstances resolved final Saturday.
I’ve nothing in opposition to Haney and I’m the final individual to withhold correct recognition from somebody who’s earned it, however I simply need to maintain issues actual. Devin Haney stays a piece in progress and, at 23, that’s not a imply, nasty, pessimistic factor to say in any respect. What he proved on Saturday was that he may maintain to his sport plan and never be overwhelmed by the do-or-die stress of what this combat meant or by having to carry out in very hostile territory. He handed one main intestine verify that I wasn’t positive he’d move, however he nonetheless has extra to show.
I don’t imply to return off as a “hater” or an asshole, however I’m not going to fawn throughout him for this one bout. He did what he needed to do, he did it nicely, and is now the unified world champ. However whereas successful is the prime goal, he may (and will) have achieved far more contemplating the disparity in expertise and talent. To me, at this level, he’s nonetheless extra Devon Alexander than Terence Crawford. That would very nicely change sooner or later and I’ll fortunately acknowledge his true ascension to elite stage when it occurs.
Devin Haney = Horrible fighter
Hello Paul.
I need to begin with positives first, I would like to present credit score to Devin Haney for dominating George Kambosos, I used to be beneath the impression he [w]as going [to lose]. That being mentioned, what a horrible type has he proven throughout his final 2 fights. When he fought Linares he was utilizing mixture punching protection and velocity. For the reason that Jojo Battle and now this one, he’s now opting to jab and seize to boring selections. If Devin needs to turn out to be a PPV star he wants to start out displaying one thing else. So far as Kambosos, he merely ran out of creativeness on methods to be current through the combat. He was not throwing combos and never investing in physique assault.
Finest Regards.
– Miguel
Hey Miguel.
I went into element within the response above, however I agree that, whereas Haney’s win was one-sided, he may’ve and will’ve achieved extra. It’s troubling to see a gifted fighter settled right into a “do the minimal to take the win” groove, particularly at such a younger age when he must be burning with want to show that he’s the perfect. It’s like having a Ferrari in your storage, constructed for velocity and energy, however solely driving it 25 mph down facet streets as a result of that’s all you actually need to run your errands. In a prizefighter, this safety-first mindset virtually by no means ends in long-term, sustained success on the elite stage. You simply have to take a look at the true greats, each current and previous. Would they be content material with jabbing and grabbing their technique to a one-sided factors win if they might clearly do no matter they needed in opposition to a restricted opponent? After all not. This was the most important of all levels for Haney and the best alternative of his profession up thus far, and he by no means even tried to kick issues into excessive gear. That’s disappointing. Yeah, he received the win and took all of the belts, however he didn’t make the case for himself as the most effective light-weight on the planet, at the very least not ENOUGH of a case.
As for Kambosos? Nicely, I mentioned a lot of occasions that he was higher than I assumed, however not so good as folks assume. His efficiency was additionally disappointing. He had no solutions for even the best of basic methods and couldn’t (or wouldn’t) throw warning to the wind to attempt to bridge the hole of talent and expertise. Given what he didn’t present within the half one, who on the planet will need to see an element two?
Bought a query (or hate mail) for Magno’s Bulging Mail Sack? The most effective of the most effective will get included within the weekly mailbag phase proper right here at FightHype. Ship your stuff right here: paulmagno@theboxingtribune.com.
